


A Chance

by elfofthedarkside



Series: The Universe Where Jackie Exists [5]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture, Panic Attacks, Past Abuse, Tony Stark is everyone's dad - Freeform, author is projecting way too much to be comfy, author wishes they didn't have to google how many infinity stones there are, but just a bit, but not between tony and jackie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 09:26:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18914161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elfofthedarkside/pseuds/elfofthedarkside
Summary: Loki was found in the ruins of an old S.H.I.E.L.D. building, having been cryogenically frozen since 2013. He seems to be deathly afraid of... something. Something he says is coming.Tony doesn't trust this.





	A Chance

**Author's Note:**

> Yooooooooooo I haven't written this much in so long I think I'm gonna cry. I wrote this between bursts of catching up on game of thrones bc our subscription is getting cancelled at the end of the month and I'm only in season 4 lol.
> 
> draft title was "damn jackie back at it again with the ~crippling depression~" And this is a follow-up to the first fic I posted in this series, "The Trickster's Plot" so if you somehow found this but didn't read that it might make more sense if you read that first.
> 
> may or may not be severely projecting my own issues but like what else is fanfic for amirite?

“You’re not  _ listening, _ Mr. Stark.” Jackie was trying, god, she was  _ trying _ not to raise her voice, trying to control the pitch that rose regardless.  _ If you become emotional he’ll disregard you. Keep cool. _

“I don’t need to listen, Jackie. He is a powerful godlike being that tried to take over multiple worlds and was sentenced to life in space prison. He is  _ not _ coming near me, near you, near this building, hell, if I could launch him off this planet I would.” Tony, damn him, still didn’t get it.

“From what I gather,  _ Sir, _ he was being controlled during the Battle of New York, and the  _ thing _ that controlled him is horrifyingly powerful and is coming straight for us because the stone powering Vision is like some sort of beacon for crazy.” She was waving her hands around again, he’d make fun of her again, this was going terribly. “If we can get him some help, maybe he would tell us what we’re up against. Does that sound doable, Sir? Does it?”

“Absolutely not!” He was staring at her like she was insane, like  _ he _ was the rational one. She could feel the resentment bubbling up, the pressure growing. She had to keep it under control.

“Bucky was a brainwashed terrorist, too,  _ Sir. _ And maybe you didn’t like that either, but you learned to suck it up for the greater good. Just--fucking--” She ground her teeth together as he rolled his eyes.

“That is a completely different scenario.”

She was really struggling to hold back tears now. “He’s  _ terrified. _ He hasn’t been able to stop shaking since he learned we’d used these Infinity Stones. He’s not completely evil--no one is! You agreed to work with Clint even after he had attacked you, and he’d been controlled by the same thing! He’s hurt and scared and right now the only threat he poses is to himself; I don’t doubt for a second that if we don’t take care of him he’d sooner kill himself than live in fear.” Her voice was steady now, but she knew that wouldn’t last for long. She knew better than to get a false sense of triumph. It was only a matter of time before she broke and he’d win.

“I don’t have to feel sorry for him just because he’s fucked up. I’m fucked up, you don’t see me begging for help.”

She couldn’t do it. If she played the guilt card,  _ she’d _ be the asshole. There was no way to convince him, and she didn’t know what to do, what she would have to tell Loki, how she’d live with herself, and oh fuck, there it goes.

Great. Now she’s crying. Like a flood overflowing a dam, tears spilling relentlessly, not bothered with the fact that  _ I’m crying in front of him, he’s going to see how badly I lost, he’s going to see how weak I am, fuck. _ And there went the adrenaline. Wonderful. She’d likely be awake for hours tonight, restless, so tired and mind so awake but so empty, nothing to do but stare.

_ At least pay attention to your own breakdown, fuck. _

“I… h- hold on, kiddo.” Tony sounded concerned, which just made her cry harder. Now she was manipulating him into feeling bad. “I didn’t mean…”

No, of course he didn’t mean to make her cry. He just wanted to be right, no matter what.

_ Make up your mind. Are you the bad guy or is he? _

“I’m fine,” She snapped, slapping his hand away when he tried to lay it on her shoulder. “Don’t.” Her voice was weirdly steady, considering the sobs threatening to strip away all credibility she had. That was her  _ I’m crying in the bathroom but my friend just called and needs advice not a trip to Feel Sorry For Me Land _ voice. He wasn’t buying it, though.

“Let me-” She slapped his hand away again, and he sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to make you upset. I just…”

“You don’t trust me to make any of the important calls.” Her voice stayed steady.

“That’s not it.”

“You think I’m stupid for even thinking this would be a good idea.”

“No.” He managed to carefully take her hands, gently pulling them away from her face, oh Jesus, there’s blood on her palm. She bit it again, a minute ago when the frustration was the strongest, and now he’d going to think she’s insane. “Hey, look at me.” It wasn’t an order. He was careful to avoid sounding demanding. She could ignore it, she could defiantly keep her eyes fixed on the diffused blue light through his shirt.

“Jackie. Please.”

She looked at him. It wasn’t exactly meeting his eyes, she kept her gaze locked right past his head, but she was looking towards him. He sighed again, was that annoyance? He didn’t mention it. Instead, he said, “I trust you with my life. But this is…” He paused, glancing around as if waiting for the answer to appear in the air. “This is a lot. He’s dangerous, no matter how much of an urge to save injured people you have. I don’t trust him to not hurt you. Even if he is more scared than malevolent. Even Bucky has inadvertently hurt you. I just want you safe.”

“I don’t… I don’t have a savior complex,” Was all she would manage. Her voice was starting to tremble again, which made her grind her teeth in frustration again.

“I think you might, just a bit.” His voice was soft, his grip on her hands firm but not tight. If she wanted to pull away she could. Did she want to? Yes. She wanted him to shove it. So why hadn’t she moved?

“I think you want to fix other people. I think you think if you can fix someone else then you won’t have to worry about yourself.”

“That’s bullshit.” Her voice was completely broken, cracking and hollow. His expression softened.

“I think that’s why you stayed with me, even though you could very well have figured yourself out if you wanted to leave. And I think that’s why I wanted you to stay.” She finally met his eyes, and noticed he was tearing up a bit, too. “I think we’re a little too similar for our own good.”

“I don’t want you to fix me,” She retorted, but all the bite of it fizzled before it made it out of her mouth.

“And I don’t want you to fix me.” He shrugged. “But I also want to be able to talk to you without making you shut down or cry.”

“I’m sorry.” The impulse of it made her wince, stupid, why would you say that? Now he’ll feel sorry for you and-

“Not your fault.” He really had a knack for being blunt and comforting at the same time. “Definitely not your fault. Your dad’s fault, my fault. Not yours.” He glanced away, almost… ashamed? “I’m a stubborn asshole. You know that. I don’t shy away from low blows in an argument. And that’s having a really bad effect on you. So I’m the one who should be sorry. I need to watch my mouth.”

She couldn’t reach her brain, couldn’t think of a rational response, so instead she cracked a smile. “We already knew that.”

He returned the smile, laughing softly. “We’ve known for… how old am I?”

“Old.”

“Alright, kiddo. Let’s not be mean.”

The atmosphere was relaxed around them. She was already thinking through their argument and wondering how she could have thought those horrible things about him. A particular mental jab came to mind and she felt her eyes stinging again.

“You okay?”

She swallowed, taking in a shaky breath. “I don’t hate you. I don’t. I don’t. I’m sorry. I didn’t want- I’m sorry, I don’t-”

“Hey, hey.” He squeezed her hands. “It’s fine. Don’t feel bad for thinking I was a piece of shit. I was.”

“You shouldn’t have to apologize-”

“But I do.” His forehead was creased in concern, he shouldn’t feel bad for this, she was the one- “If I don’t admit when I was wrong, it’ll just make you feel like you were. So, I’m sorry for pressing too hard. I was wrong.”

“And… And I was wrong for asking for something this big.”

He gave her hands another squeeze before letting them go, and she quickly used the edge of her shirt collar to wipe her face. “It’s all good.” He thought for a moment. “Well, as long as I can make sure you’re safe…” He nodded slowly, like he couldn't believe what he was about to say. “I suppose we could give him a chance.”

Her eyes went wide. “Tony?”

“But just one.” His voice was firm, and Jackie knew he wasn’t joking. “If he hurts you, or even tries to, I don’t care what he has to say. I will buy out NASA and ship him to Mars.”

\-----

Loki was surprisingly chill about having his wrists strapped to the table. Jackie had been sure to clean up and calm down before she met with him, but she still may have cut corners on her routine. It didn’t matter, she told herself, she’d shower tonight. Loki shouldn’t have to wait any longer.

Sitting across from him, she had set up a microphone and had an empty notebook in front of her, as well as a handful of crayons--they can’t be used as weapons to break the skin, Tony had said. Speak of the devil, Tony was sitting at the perpendicular edge of the table between them, just in case.

“State your name for the record, please.” Jackie was conducting this, no matter what Tony said, and she wanted to at least have a semblance of officiality.

“Loki of Asgard, Odinson, first of my name, god of trickery and mischief.” His voice was also a bit of a surprise. It was smooth and confident, quite the contrast of the scared man she’d pulled out of cryo less than a day ago.

“You are the brother of Thor, correct?”

“Adopted brother,” He corrected, like he had been trained to do so. “But we were raised together.”

“And you attempted to usurp the throne of Asgard from him when your father, Odin, was in such a state that he couldn’t rule?”

“Thor was a hotheaded brat, unfit to rule. Besides, Father had banished him. I usurped nothing.”

“But you allowed enemies of your Father into the kingdom and gave them opportunity to assassinate him, only to betray them so you would… look good in front of your father…?” Jackie squinted at her existing notes. “That seems really convoluted.”

“Yes…” Loki looked a bit uncomfortable, almost embarrassed. “I had a better plan, but things went wrong so quickly, you know, improvisation doesn’t always work perfectly.”

Jackie nodded, an amused smile threatening to show. “Sure. So then after your defeat you fell into, like space?”

That triggered something. A glint, a twitch, not even something physical, just a shift in his demeanor. “Something like that.”

“And you were recruited to find the Tesseract and take over Earth?”

“‘Recruited.’ Much nicer word than I would have used.” His annoyed smirk seemed to be hiding something behind it.

“And this person who found you…” She glanced down. “What would he want with Earth?”

“He didn’t really need me to take it. As soon as he acquired the rest he would have enacted his plan and by then…” There was that shake in his voice again. His throat seemed to close before he could finish his sentence, and he swallowed. “By then it wouldn’t matter.”

“And by ‘the rest,’ you mean…?”

“The Infinity Stones.” He said this like it was the simplest thing of his story to understand, like she should already know what that meant.

She scribbled down the words, not letting her eyes wander far from his. “You mentioned them when I first found you. Are they important?”

He scoffed. “Oh, they’re only the most powerful forces in the conceivable universe that when combined a person capable of wielding them could literally reshape the fabric of reality to whatever they desired with a snap of their fingers.” He leaned forward, and Tony threw a hand up between him and Jackie. “Are you quite understanding what we’re facing?” He craned his neck to see around Tony’s outstretched arm. All semblance of coyness and connivery had fallen away, leaving only desperation.

“Why the hell would you bring the Tesseract to him, then?” Tony demanded, slowly lowering his arm when he realized Loki wasn’t going to do anything.

“You think I wanted to?” He turned his attention to Tony, gaze steely. “I was tortured, my dear Anthony, and when I refused still he broke my mind and forced the influence of the Mind Stone upon me.” His jaw trembled, just barely, he was good at controlling it, but Jackie still noticed. “I am the god of mischief, not the god of mindless violence and control. Anything I do is for my own amusement, and had I the chance to break free of the control I most certainly would not have handed the Space Stone over.”

“But you would’ve used it for yourself?” Tony, damn him, wouldn’t keep his mouth shut.

Jackie was frantically writing notes down, taking this opportunity to interrupt. “How many Stones are there?”

“Six,” Loki replied, still glaring at Tony. “The Mind Stone and Space Stone, as previously stated, along with the Power Stone, TIme Stone, Reality Stone, and the Soul Stone.”

“And how do you know all of this?” Jackie took this down as quickly as she could, her hand cramping.

“He was always speaking of them, his grand plan for the universe, how he would bring peace and balance.” He laughed humorlessly. “Arrogant bastard.”

“And who was this?”

Loki seemed to be steeling himself, as if speaking the name would summon him. “The Mad Titan. Thanos.”

Though she had never even heard the name, something about his tone made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. “Thanos. What was his plan?”

The empty look he gave filled her with such a despair that she physically felt a pang in her stomach. “To bring balance. The universe only has a set amount of resources, and he wanted to make sure we didn’t run out.” He took a shaky breath. “He wishes to completely erase one half of all life.”

“On Earth?” Tony asked, incredulous.

“On all planets. Everything. Every civilization that exists in the infinite universe.” He snapped his fingers, though it was difficult with his hand pressed to the table by the straps. “One half. Gone.”

“How would he choose which half?” Jackie asked in a hushed voice, horrified.

“Random chance.” Loki managed a harsh laugh. “As if that would make it better. You wouldn’t know until your loved ones turned to dust in your arms.”

Tony looked as if all the energy had drained from him, he sagged in his seat, looking decades older. “And he’s… he’s heading this way?”

Loki nodded. “Now you have cause to panic, I presume? Would it be merciful to tell everyone, or hide the fact until it happens?”

“We don’t need philosophical questions, we need to do something!” Jackie surprised not only herself with her sudden outburst, but the other two men as well. She glanced over at Tony, unsure. “...Right?”

“What do you plan on doing?” Loki asked, his taunting tone cruel.

“Not nothing.” Tony set his jaw. “She’s right. We can’t do nothing. We have to make a plan.” He looked over at Loki. “How fast does he travel?”

Loki gave him a doubtful look, glancing at Jackie as if she should be the rational one and tell Tony it was hopeless, but she just stared back. He sighed. “Assuming the Space Stone is still on Midgard, he doesn’t have a powerful enough ship to teleport his army quickly.”

“Army?”

“Oh, yes.” He stared at Tony dead-on, lips curled into a parody of a smirk. “He has an army. And, er, where did you say your Hulk is?”

Tony glared back. “How fast?”

“He’s going planet by planet, and knowing the course he was on six years ago, he should reach this planet by next year.”

“What time next year?”

Loki blinked. “I don’t have his itinerary, Stark. Would it be helpful if I had stolen his day planner? I don’t know. That’s the best estimate I can give. That’s assuming he has picked up the signal of the Mind Stone, which you, like an idiot, hooked up to your internet, so that’s a safe bet.” That look could be only described as “shit-eating”.

“That’s close enough.” Jackie, like always, was having a horrible time conceptualizing the future, but she figured she could use that to her advantage. She could be level-headed for Tony. “We’ll need to call in every contact we have.” She glanced at Loki. “That includes Thor, just so you know.”

“Well, that reunion won’t be awkward at all.” He sighed. “‘Hello, brother! I know you found my cold, dead corpse and probably went through severe issues because of that, but I’m alive! Ta-da!’”

Jackie laughed at that. “You can work on that speech while we assemble.” She looked at Tony again, and she could already see the gears turning in his head. “You good?”

He met her eyes. “Yeah. But we’re gonna need every minute we have.”

**Author's Note:**

> I have recently come to the conclusion that all my ocs and characters I bond with are my cis-sonas and it's driving me wild. Jackie? Me as a cis woman. Tony and Loki? My cis man fantasy (even tho like. Loki is fluid. like. mcu Loki is "cis"). It's bonkers right? But it makes so much weird sense.
> 
> Anyways. Hope you enjoyed. I have no idea where this hanging thread of a plot is going but ?????? it's going somewhere???? I hope?? And if things go ok endgame won't even happen so that's good right? So yeah. Thanks for reading.


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